February 22, 2008

Abstract: (Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Many adults in the United States believe the coalition effort should have a specific timeframe, according to a poll by Rasmussen Reports. 37 per cent of respondents would bring all troops home from Iraq within a year, and 24 per cent would withdraw all soldiers immediately.

(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Many adults in the United States believe the coalition effort should have a specific timeframe, according to a poll by Rasmussen Reports. 37 per cent of respondents would bring all troops home from Iraq within a year, and 24 per cent would withdraw all soldiers immediately.

Conversely, 34 per cent of respondents believe the U.S. should stay in Iraq until the mission is complete.

The coalition effort against Saddam Hussein’s regime was launched in March 2003. At least 3,966 American soldiers have died during the military operation, and 29,200 troops have been wounded in action.

In December 2005, Iraqi voters renewed their National Assembly. In May 2006, Shiite United Iraqi Alliance member Nouri al-Maliki officially took over as prime minister.

In September 2007, commander of the Multi-National Force - Iraq David Petraeus and U.S. ambassador in Iraq Ryan Crocker provided a comprehensive assessment of the situation in Iraq to the U.S. Congress. In addition, U.S. president George W. Bush said U.S. forces in Iraq would be reduced by 5,700 troops in December, and announced the possibility of a further decrease in July 2008.

In November 2007, the Australian Labour Party (ALP) won the legislative election in the country, effectively ending the 11-year tenure of Liberal leader John Howard. ALP leader Kevin Rudd had vowed to remove Australia’s combat troops from Iraq by mid-2008.

Yesterday, Australian foreign minister Stephen Smith confirmed that the country’s 550 combat troops will be withdrawn from Iraq this year, saying, "It doesn’t occur on one day; it’s a big logistical operation to put troops in and it’s a big logistical operation to get them out. All the assessments are that the military situation in Iraq has substantially improved over the last 12 months or so. (...) (Our party believes that) we shouldn’t have been there in the first place."

Polling Data

When it comes to the War in Iraq, the U.S. should...

	Feb. 2008	Jan. 2008	Dec. 2007
Withdraw immediately	24%	26%	25%
Bring all troops home within a year	37%	37%	38%
Stay until the mission is complete	34%	34%	33%

Source: Rasmussen Reports
Methodology: Telephone interviews with 1,000 American adults, conducted on Feb. 12 and Feb. 13, 2008. Margin of error is 3 per cent.